Applications accepted for Tokyo Sky Tree ticket draws

The operator of Tokyo Sky Tree on March 22 began accepting applications from individuals for ticket draws for its two observatories, two months before the world’s tallest tower opens to the public.

To prevent overcrowding, Tobu Tower Sky Tree Co., which operates the 634-meter-high tower in Tokyo’s Sumida Ward, is holding the draws to decide which visitors can enter the tower during the first 50 days of operation starting on May 22.

Applications will be accepted only through the Internet (http://www.tokyo-skytree.jp/english/) and Tobu Travel Co.’s 44 branch offices. At the Kita-Senju Eki branch office in Tokyo’s Adachi Ward, about 40 people lined up before it opened at 10 a.m.

A total of 14,000 admission tickets for the 350-meter-high First Observatory and the 450-meter-high Second Observatory will be available per day for the first 50 days.

Of them, 8,000 tickets will be available for individuals, with the remaining tickets set aside for group reservations, package tours and other programs.

Tobu Tower Sky Tree started accepting group reservations in November last year. All 540,000 such available tickets for admission until Sept. 21 have been sold out.

The opening of the new Tokyo Skytree tower in Sumida Ward has really shifted attention to Tokyo’s eastern, sleepier half. Young artisans and craftspeople in neighboring Taito Ward are hoping to draw some of it their way--in a bazaar beneath a set of railway tracks.